According to the Financial Times, some U.K. ministers are pushing to devolve responsibility for the air passenger duty to the Scottish government in attempt to undercut one of the Scottish National Party's arguments for independence. The SNP, which objects to the application of the tax to flights into and out of Scottish regional airports, has proposed reducing the duty by 50 percent should Scotland gain the authority to do so under independence. Northern Ireland was granted similar authority over the administration of the APD to flights in or out of its airports in 2012 and used it to revoke the duty entirely for long-haul flights.